September 2020

LEADERSHIP
PROFILE
MEGAN
BUCKLEY
COO, Hy’s of Canada
BY DANIELLE SCHALK | PHOTOGRAPHY BY JAMIE-LEE FUOCO
As COO of Vancouverbased
Hy’s of Canada,
Megan Buckley’s personal
leadership philosophy
hinges largely on
communication, which
has served her, and the
company, well through
the current turmoil
caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I’ve always been a believer in great
communication, so increasing the frequency
of my communication with my teams was
the logical next step to take,” she says of how
she adapted her strategy, noting that staying
in regular touch has been key to keeping
employees engaged and motivated through
this turbulent time.
Under normal circumstances, regular
onsite visits and personal communication
with managers and staff play an important
role in how Buckley engages with Hy’s
restaurant teams. “I find the more I visit [our
restaurants] the more they seem to appreciate
and get from the visits,” she explains. “Sitting
down to talk with the managers and/or the
staff seems to elicit positive results.”
But, in our current situation, “scheduled
phone and Zoom calls have had to suffice,” says
Buckley. “I [also] increased the frequency of
my staff newsletters from once a month
to twice a week and tried to balance the
content between helpful information
and fun, lighthearted news.”
FOODSERVICEANDHOSPITALITY.COM
That said, Buckley ultimately credits Hy’s
culture as the glue that’s held the team together
while being physically apart. “We’re a fairly
small executive team and we’re pretty hands
on. Our philosophy is we treat our staff and
our guests like family and we lead accordingly,”
the COO explains. “We’re so fortunate to have
built a culture of family with our employees,
so their loyalty and dedication to our survival
has been extraordinary.”
It’s undeniable that the pandemic has
created an array of unique challenges for
leaders within the industry. And, when tackling
these, Buckley says the big picture is critical —
which may be easier said than done. Even
prior to the pandemic Buckley identified
“staying focused on the big picture” as one
of the biggest challenges facing leaders in
foodservice, given the accelerated change and
disruption within the industry.
As she explains, it’s necessary to be “confident
in the overall vision or, on the other hand,
having the experience and the confidence to
pivot from the vision, if that makes better
sense for the long term.” And, in order to do
that, it’s imperative to understand the core
of your brand, she adds. “In our industry, it’s
increasingly important to just understand
your brand — what is your brand’s DNA?”
Understanding this is especially important
as the industry ponders strategies for success
in the “new normal.”
“We can’t predict when or how this will
end, but assuming we can survive the short
term, we can attack the challenges for the
long term and look at the opportunities
we are presented with — opportunities for
change, for adopting new technologies and
practices and for growing the business in
new directions.”
SEPTEMBER 2020 FOODSERVICE AND HOSPITALITY 29